Irkutsk: Russian authorities are monitoring people who had contact with an employee of an anti plague research institute in Siberia who died after developing pneumonia of unknown origin. About 200 people have reportedly been placed under medical observation or quarantine, but authorities have not confirmed that the woman had plague or that there is an outbreak of the disease.
The woman worked at the Irkutsk Anti Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East. Local media identified her as 28 year old Darya Shipilova, although Russian health authorities have not officially confirmed her identity.
She became seriously ill and was treated at a hospital in Shelekhov, a town near Irkutsk. She later died after developing pneumonia whose cause has not been established.
The death has raised concern because the woman worked at an institute that conducts research on plague and other infectious diseases. Reports have circulated that she may have been exposed to plague bacteria while working at the institute. However, Russian authorities have not confirmed that such an accident occurred.
Russia's consumer health and safety watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said testing found no microorganisms associated with the woman's professional activities. The agency also said there was no evidence of an incident involving pathogenic microorganisms at the research institute.
Russian authorities have identified people who had contact with the woman and placed them under medical observation or quarantine as a precaution. The measures do not mean that these people have plague.
Testing of contacts identified two cases of COVID 19 and two cases of rhinovirus infection. No confirmed cases of plague have been reported among the people being monitored.
The hospital in Shelekhov where the woman died was also placed under quarantine, with authorities restricting admissions and discharges as they investigated the situation.
Irkutsk regional Governor Igor Kobzev has said the situation is under control. He said no new cases had been identified among staff of the anti plague institute in the days following the woman's illness and that people who had been in contact with her were being monitored.
The World Health Organization is in contact with Russian health authorities as it seeks more information about the case. WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said the organisation was checking information about the woman's illness, laboratory test results, the contact tracing process and the health of people who had been exposed to her.
Based on the information available to it, WHO said the risk to the general population appeared to be low. The organisation said the contacts identified by Russian authorities were being monitored and that none had shown symptoms at the time of the latest assessment.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov urged the public and media to rely on information from Rospotrebnadzor rather than rumours and speculation.
Plague is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. It continues to occur naturally in some parts of the world, mainly among wild animals and fleas. Plague can be treated with antibiotics, particularly when treatment begins promptly.
Pneumonic plague affects the lungs and can spread from person to person through respiratory droplets. This is why health authorities take suspected cases seriously and quickly identify and monitor close contacts.
However, there is currently no confirmed evidence that the woman died from pneumonic plague. The official description of her illness remains pneumonia of unknown origin.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the cause of the woman's illness and whether there was any connection to her work at the research institute. They are also monitoring people who may have been exposed to her.
For now, the incident remains a suspected public health case rather than a confirmed plague outbreak.